New-vehicle sales in April declined by 0.2%, to 37 107 units, compared with the same month last year.
The new passenger car market reached 24 174 units in April – a 6.1% decrease on the same month last year.
Some good news was that the sale of new bakkies, vans and minibus taxis jumped by 11%, to 10 611 units.
April medium-truck sales expanded by 20.3%, reaching 563 units, while heavy-truck and bus sales leapt by 23%, to 1 759 units.
Total year-to-date sales are now up 1.3% on the first four months of last year.
New-vehicle exports from South Africa also delivered some cheer in April, improving by 13.4%, to 37 107 units.
Year-to-date vehicle exports, at 115 567 units, are, however, a mere 0.1% up on the corresponding period last year.
Naamsa | The Automotive Business Council expects sales to remain muted for the remainder of the year, owing to static economic growth and the prospect of further interest rate hikes.